Toyota Motor, No.1 Shorted Stock in Asia-Pacific Region in February

Investigation of 700 Hedge Funds and 15,000 Stocks
Tesla Ranks No.1 in the Americas Region

Japanese automobile manufacturer Toyota Motor Corporation became the most shorted large-cap stock in the Asia-Pacific region in February, according to major foreign media reports on the 12th (local time).

According to a report from financial platform Hazeltree cited by foreign media, Toyota surpassed Japan's largest pharmaceutical company Takeda Pharmaceutical last month to become the most shorted large-cap stock by hedge funds in the Asia-Pacific region.

The report calculated the short-selling rankings by region worldwide based on 15,000 stocks traded by approximately 700 hedge funds globally. Short selling is an investment technique that profits by betting on a stock price decline. It involves borrowing shares expected to fall in price, selling them, and then buying them back at a lower price to return the borrowed shares, thereby earning a profit.

[Image source=Yonhap News]

During the same period, electric vehicle manufacturer Tesla was the most shorted stock in the North American region. Other large-cap stocks in the Americas that ranked high in short selling included AI server manufacturer Super Micro Computer, media group Comcast, Capital One Financial Corporation, and Wells Fargo. In the Europe, Middle East, and Africa (EMEA) region, luxury group LVMH held the top short-selling position for six consecutive months.

In the mid-cap category, French train manufacturer Alstom and American chip maker Wolfspeed were the most shorted stocks in the EMEA and Americas regions, respectively. In the Asia-Pacific region, Japanese semiconductor substrate manufacturer Ibiden ranked first in short selling.

Meanwhile, Toyota Motor Corporation, which has achieved the global number one in automobile sales for four consecutive years, surpassed Samsung Electronics last month to become the second largest by market capitalization in Asia. Toyota's stock price has risen about 32% this year, and on the 1st, it became the first Japanese company to surpass a market capitalization of 60 trillion yen (approximately 530 trillion won). As of 9 a.m. today, Toyota shares are trading at 3,515 yen, up 1.15% from the previous close.